it's all about the journey…not the destination!

Training Week #8 – The greatest love of all

You know how some weeks begin in a very different way than they end? This week started with some fierce, but enjoyable runs…a little bit of snow. But this week ended with the death of a music icon, Whitney Houston. Now, you can say what you like about her music — like it or not — but for me, growing up during the era where Ms Houston reigned…. I think her songs, her words, her d@mn powerful emotion taught me what to expect from life, from love, and from myself. “I found the greatest love of all….inside of me.”. Wow. Let the weight of THAT rest upon you for a moment. For me, it takes me all the way back to 1980, my 8th grade graduation from School # 5 in Paterson, NJ. Our graduating class was up on the stage and we performed that song for our parents and loved ones who were there to share in our accomplishments. For me, it was just a bunch of words then. A pretty melody, and I liked to sing, so it was OK.

Fast forward thirty-two years, and this song is just about as personal an anthem as anybody could need, want, or expect. Go home and google the lyrics to this song…..I challenge you, because you just might have an Ah-ha moment when you get to the chorus, and the part that always, always makes me cry. Even now at the rock hard age of 46.

“The greatest love of all

Is easy to achieve

Learning to love yourself

It is the greatest love of all!”

Amen Ms. Houston. Rest with the angels knowing you helped so many of us, just by being you, and releasing your gift into the universe.

Those of us on the weight loss journey, OH we identify with what Ms. Whitney sings. Learning to love yourself….well, that’s the secret, the key, the magic to this whole journey. I’m getting there, little by little. I’m finally at the point where I am my own friend. That much progress took 2 years. Love? Hmmmm, that might take a little longer. But I at least see it as a proper goal now, and with occasional walks down memory lane with Whitney, I do believe that I will get there.

Training week #8 ended with 20.5 miles burned on the treadmill and the road, and with a weight loss of 2.6 pounds …..I think some of that might have been in tears tho…..

About Diane

Ciao! My name is Diane. I'm a wife, a mom, a working professional, and a Weight Watcher from New Jersey. I started blogging in 2011, at 45 years old, when I was training for my first Half Marathon at Rutgers on April 22, 2012. Since then, I've lost 80 pounds, completed my Half Marathon goal and gone on to train for and run my very first Full Marathon. On Jan 13, 2013, I ran the Disney Marathon in Orlando, Fl! What an incredible day. As the saying goes -- "The person who starts the race is not the same person who finishes the race." I am forever changed! So now we move on to the next phase of this journey! Come along. We're in this together!! Ciao for now!